the Littlest Sullivan: 30 weeks

Wow....we have had a heck of a week! We have been going NON STOP...so, warning, this is a LONG post...

Last Thursday, we headed out to Southern Illinois. It seemed like it took forever to get there...we got stuck in some rush hour traffic on the way out, had to stop to fix the chains on the trailer, had to do several bathroom stops for different people in the car, had to make stops so I could stretch and walk around, and had to stop and get peaches, Vidalia onions and pecans for the Illinois fam...and all of this was before we were out of Georgia!

We FINALLY arrived at Papa and Judy's house around midnight, Central time (you gain an hour on the way up). We were all so tired, we changed into PJs and went straight to sleep. I was definitely beat...Ryan started getting feisty somewhere around Nashville, and she was prancing around non stop until Sunday night, I think.

Friday morning we got up early to go pick up our new furniture. It is so much better than I even imagined it would be. The man who built it for us, Van, did an AMAZING job. I had designed a changing table and an armoire to be made and several people saw my furniture in the shop and requested one for themselves! Van told us that he named the armoire the "Georgia Closet", since it was for their Georgia customers. We have furniture named for us! (well, sort of.)

The "Georgia Closet"

Saturday, Dave and I ran into town to get some groceries so I could cook dinner for everyone. Then at 1:00, we drove the 2 blocks from Papa's house to the church for Ryan's baby shower, given by my grandma Judy, my aunt Sheila, and my cousins Leah & Lane. I walked in and there were people there that I hadn't seen in 15 years! A lot of women from the church came, some of my grandma's friends, my family, and all of the women on my aunt's side of the family. Even Brother Dale, our Pastor, came! The only guys there were Dave, my cousin's boyfriend Adam, and Brother Dale...well, until Papa showed up, conveniently when it was time to eat! hahaha :)

My family did such a great job putting on the shower. My cousin made the cutest invitations and my aunt got an adorable cake to match.

Bubblegum, jumpropes, giggles and curls, fairytale wishes make up little girls

There was lots of good food and I had 3 or 4 glasses of strawberry lemonade. Yum! We played some really cute games. One was "the Price is Right"...my aunt would hold up a baby item, like a pack of diapers, and we had to guess how much each item cost. Whoever got the closest to the total cost of all of the items, without going over, was the winner....mom won...she was 3 cents off. Unbelievable!! I won one game - Adam and Leah would play a clip of a song that the title had either 'Baby' or 'Girl' in it, and you had to give the song title and artist. I think I got almost all of them right (I may have copied off of mom for some of the older songs....just maybe)

After the games, we ate lunch and then I opened presents for Ryan. She got a lot of clothes, blankies and other goodies, and my grandma Judy had several things made for her, including the most ADORABLE crocheted dress...I am so in love with it and can't wait to do a photo shoot of Ryan in it!!

Ryan's crocheted dress

I am so grateful for the shower! I know my family worked really hard on it, and it was just perfect. Thank you so much everyone!! Dave, Ryan and I really appreciate your time and I am sure it wasn't cheap to put on! It was so good to get to see everyone, especially my aunt's mom, who recently made a full recovery from cancer, and my great-aunt Delores, who I don't get to see very often - she is hilarious!!

Opening an antique baby book my aunt Delores got for us - it is perfect!!

All of the girls in my family

Sunday was Father's Day, and we took a drive around the lake with Papa. It was ridiculously hot, so we didn't stop to get out very often. When we got back, the guys grilled some steaks for everyone. Dave and I called our dads to wish them a happy Father's Day.

We had a great trip to Illinois. We crammed so many things into 3 days! We had a full day of roaming around searching for primitive shops, went to the auction, played games at my aunt & uncle's house, had a baby shower, went to the Custard Stand for the most amazing ice cream, had Maid-Rite sandwiches (the same ones they make on the show Roseanne...that being my favorite show, I really wanted to get one!), did puzzles at Papa's, went "loafing" at McDonald's with Papa and his friends, church on Sunday morning, had a cook out, rode bikes and walked through my old town (I walked), took a drive around the entire lake, and, most importantly, got to visit with my family. Oh, and I made chicken pot pie for everyone. :)

We got back to Georgia around 6pm Monday, and everyone was BEYOND ready to relax. We wanted to unload our new furniture so badly, but the guys just weren't up for it. Then on Tuesday, Aurora was having a birthday party, so we went to that for a little while. Dave had to work late, so no furniture that night either.

Wednesday night we FINALLY got to unload the trailer full of furniture!! I was so excited I could hardly wait. The guys carried it back to the baby's room, but we had to open it all up to let it air out a little, so I didn't get to start filling it :(

I started washing all of Ryan's clothes, blankets, burp cloths, changing pads, bibs, hats, socks, sheets, and anything else fabric I could find. The washer and dryer have been going non stop ever since Wednesday morning I think.

Since we were out of town on Father's day, and running around like crazy all week, we celebrated Father's Day Wednesday night. I made spaghetti for the guys and gave them their gifts. Ryan gave daddy a book called "Daddy's Girl" and she gave Papa "My First Harley Tool Kit" so she can work on the motorcycle with him...it is a little plush toolbox with stuffed tools inside that rattle and crinkle and make noise. Baby girl gives kind of selfish gifts :)

Yesterday (Thursday), mom and I went out to Babies R Us to get a crib mattress so we could get the nursery more put together. We ended up getting quite a few little things too, and we also found a few things to add to the registry :)

Today I got some contact paper for the new wooden furniture so I could put her clothes away, and I got a crib skirt so we could go ahead and make up the crib. The room still needs a lot of work, but it is really starting to come together.

Overflowing with clothes!!

A little reading nook for Ryan...she may not use it for a while...

The changing table that I designed and had made

Ryan has been kicking a LOT harder this week. I can also feel her moving in new places. I think she has changed positions because my belly is starting to even out. Before, you could actually see that she was completely on the right, but I think she is more in the middle now.

Dave has been "frantic" this week about packing our hospital bag. I had to get some tooth brushes, toothpaste, deodorant, etc to throw in there. I think Dave is ready to get this show on the road! Too bad we still have a little over 2 months left! But, I guess you never know when she will be ready to make her entrance, so better safe than sorry!

It has been blazing hot here in Georgia, and even HOTTER in Illinois, if you can believe it, so I have been staying inside and keeping myself busy. We have a couple's shower to go to tomorrow night, and I have a photo shoot that I need to finish editing before then. After that, maybe we can take a breather Sunday and just have a day off!! I know for a fact that I have been doing way too much lately...my feet and hips told me so. I foresee taking it easy in my future.

Ryan and I have a check up on Thursday, so we will let you know how that goes!

Here we are at 30 weeks...